Out of Luck
by SamNny
Summary: Takishima accepts another challenge from Hikari. Each of them put something on the line. Who will win this time? HiKei
1. The Challenge

"Another challenge?"

"Yes! I know I'll beat you this time."

"And what do I get if I win, Miss Rank Two?"

"Don't call me 'Miss Rank Two!' What do you want if you win?"

"Hm… a date."

"A date?"

"Yes, if I win you have to go on a date with me this Sunday."

"Fine! And if I win you can never call me 'Miss Rank Two' again!"

"Deal."

This was it, the opportunity that Hikari had been waiting for. There was no way she could lose this time. Her outgoing personality and friendly demeanor would surely guarantee her victory. Takashima was too quiet and intimidating to pull this off. Sure he was charming, but this was a little kid event and his charms wouldn't work on them.

Every year the school held a fair for the elementary kids. It was held at the high school, but the middle school kids had no choice but to help out. The student council from the high school would plan it and the student council from the middle school would assign other kids certain duties to help set it up. High school students were allowed to help set up and run the fair, but it was not required. This is what gave Hikari her idea for their next challenge.

"The fair is Friday night, so we need to go sign up for a position."

"Are we going to work the same stand?"

"Yes, it wouldn't be fair if we didn't. Some stands are more popular than others, so the possibility of getting the same number of customers is slim to nothing."

"Fair enough. What stand will we be working?"

"I don't know yet, we have to go see what's available."

Hikari and Takashima stood up and gathered their things. They needed to go out to the announcement board to find out what was available. And as soon as they were gone, the rest of the S.A. began placing their bets.

"I bet that Kei wins this challenge too, just like he always does."

"Tadashi, how can you say such a thing! My little angel Hikari will win this for sure!"

"I don't know, Akira, I have a feeling that Kei will find a way to win. He wants that date with her."

"There is no way I'm letting that _creep_ go on a date with my darling Hikari!"

'But if he wins, you won't have a choice, Akira.'

"He won't win, Megumi, because we're going to help Hikari."

"We are?"

"Of course!"

"But if Hikari finds out, she won't be happy. You know she likes to win these things fairly and with her own ability. If she finds out we helped her, then she'll go on that date."

"Well then we'll just have to make sure she doesn't find out."

Ryuu, Jun, Megumi, and Tadashi all looked down in defeat. There was no reasoning with Akira when it came to Hikari and Kei. And unfortunately for them, they had no way out. None of them had plans for Friday and none of them could come up with a good excuse. They were stuck.

"Now, who wants some tea?"

* * *

Out by the announcement board, Hikari and Takashima were looking over their options. There weren't a lot of openings for two people at one stand. It wasn't because other high school students rushed in and took all the two-person positions, it was just because that's where the middle school kids got assigned.

"So do you see any good positions to work, Takashima?"

"Well considering our options are numbered, I say that we should work the face painting stand."

"Face painting? Why that one?"

"Because it's the only decent looking, popular, two-person stand I see on this list. Do you have a problem with that?"

"No, not at all! I was just curious. Face painting it is!"

Hikari took a pen from her backpack and wrote her name on the list. She handed it to Takashima and he signed his name as well.

"Alright then, it's set! I'll see you Friday at four o'clock. Oh, and just so you know, we're each responsible for keeping count of how many customers we get. I trust you'll be honest."

"When have I ever lied, especially to you, Hikari?"

"I'm not saying you have. I just want it to be perfectly clear that if you lose, you have to be honest and accept it with grace."

"I can assure you that if I lose, I won't have a problem admitting it."

Hikari nodded her head and turned to walk away. Takashima followed behind her. They were both heading back to greenhouse when Hikari's cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Hikari! So what position did you guys sign up for?"

"Akira, we're on our way back to the greenhouse. I'll let you know when we get there, O.K.?"

"Alright, see you soon!"

When they arrived back at the greenhouse, Hikari was immediately tackled by Akira. She gave her best friend a bear hug and then dragged her back over to the table, forced her into a chair, and put a cup of tea and piece of cake down in front of her.

"So tell me, what did you guys sign up for?"

"Face painting."

"Face painting? Why that? Neither one of you are exactly artists."

"We don't have to be. They're little kids; they don't care if we're great artists. As long as what we paint is recognizable, they'll be happy. Besides, it was the only good two-person stand available."

"Hikari, you know I don't like it when you challenge Kei for stakes. I don't want you going on a date with that creeper!"

"Relax, Akira, I won't lose! I've thought this whole thing through."

"I'm sure you'll do great, Hikari."

"Thanks, Ryuu! It's good to know that you guys support me."

She had a big smile on her face and she then proceeded to drink the tea Akira gave her. Takashima had taken his seat next to her awhile ago. He took out a book and began to read where he left off. However, he was secretly planning out the details to his date with Hikari. He knew he wouldn't lose - the stakes were too high.

* * *

"A/N: Alright, this is my first S.A. fan fiction. This is going to be a multi-chapter story, so this is only the beginning. I would like to point out that I purposely switched between writing "Takashima" to "Kei." I did that because Hikari only refers to him as Takashima, while the rest of the S.A. refers to him as Kei. So I made the transition. I hope that wasn't too confusing for you guys. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the story so far, and I'll be sure to update soon. Please review!"


	2. Akira's Plan

It was Thursday, the day before the fair, and Akira was preparing the rest of the S.A. to help Hikari win her challenge against Kei. They all needed disguises and a way to send the kids Hikari's way for the face painting.

"So what's the plan, Akira?"

"Well we need disguises first. Whatever happens, we cannot let Hikari see us."

"What kind of disguises?"

"I was thinking something simple, like a trench coat and hat."

'Won't that look kind of creepy at a little kids fair?'

"Not if we don't wear dark colors. We need something that'll hide our faces and allow us to hide our bribe for the kids."

"Our bribe?"

"Yes. We can't just tell the kids to go over to Hikari; we have to offer them something."

"Like what?"

"I was thinking candy. All kids love candy and the trench coats will be perfect to stash it in."

"Do you really think this is going to work?"

"Of course I do! It has to!"

The S.A. got a nervous look on their faces. All of them doubted Akira's plan, but if they tried to argue with her they would face dire consequences. So they thought it best just to agree with her and do as she says.

"Now that that's settled, we need to get our supplies ready. All of you are to go out and get your coat and assortment of candy. We need to be at the fair tomorrow at four o'clock ready to go."

They all nodded in agreement and went out to get their required supplies.

Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi all went out together. They walked around the shops downtown, but had no luck finding what they were looking for. Finding a trench coat wasn't hard, but finding one in a bright color was. They went in and out of every store they saw, whether it looked like they'd find what they were looking for or not.

After their numerous disappointing visits they were about to give up. Akira wouldn't like it, but if they couldn't find what they needed, what were they supposed to do? However, at the very end of the row of shops was exactly what they were looking for.

It wasn't exactly a trench coat, but it was long enough to pass for one, and there was a small variety in light colors.

"Well Jun, Megumi, Akira said we needed light colors with a hat to match. There might not be a wide variety to pick from, but it's what we need. Find a color that you like and let's get it."

Jun and Megumi nodded at Ryuu and began searching through the small rack of coats. They found a lot of ridiculously colored ones, but not a lot of plain, one colored ones. They saw a rainbow colored one, a pink and black stripped one, a red and orange blended one, a green and blue flowered one, and many more like them. The only plain colored ones came in light blue, light pink and light green.

Jun settled for the blue one, Megumi took the pink one, and that left Ryuu with the green one. They grabbed their matching hats and went to the counter to pay.

'What do we do now?'

"We need to go and find candy now, right Ryuu?"

"That's right. We'll go back to the candy store we saw a few blocks from here."

After they finished paying, the trio went back up to the candy store and picked out their treats. They each got a variety of suckers, chocolate, and hard candies. Once they were finished they went back to the greenhouse to wait for Akira. She would need to put her stamp of approval on what they picked out.

Tadashi was taking a different approach to getting his supplies. He went to the local shopping mall to get his stuff. He bought his candy first. It wasn't hard for him to find, but he was very tempted to eat some of it. But he decided he'd eat after he found his coat. He went filing in and out of stores in search of a light colored trench coat. He wasn't having much luck either.

He went to the very top level of the mall and decided to search there. He found a store in one of the corners and decided to try his luck there. To his surprise, it was a store that specialized in coats. He went looking for his trench coat, but still had no luck. He decided to ask the man behind the counter for help.

"Excuse me, sir. I need to find a light colored trench coat. Do you have any?"

"Light colored? Well I don't know about that. We have plenty of brown or tan ones. Will one of those work for you?"

"I'm afraid not. My girlfriend told me it _had_ to be light. She doesn't want a traditional black, tan, or brown one."

"If you don't mind my asking, why do you need a light one?"

"It's a complicated story. But we're trying to help out our friend and so we need these coats."

"I can check to see if we have one in the back, but it isn't likely."

"Thank you, sir."

The man went from behind the counter into the back room of the store. He was gone for about ten minutes until he finally emerged carrying a piece of orange material.

"This is the only thing I could find. It's technically not a trench coat, but it has the appearance of one. It's orange, so it's not technically light, but-"

"Light, bright, same thing. She doesn't really care as long as it's not dark."

"Will this work then?"

"You bet! Got a hat that goes with it?"

While the man rang up Tadashi's new coat and hat, he was spacing off thinking about where he would go to eat. He'd head back to the greenhouse after he ate. He knew Akira wouldn't make them something, so he had to eat beforehand.

* * *

Back at the greenhouse, Akira waited for the rest of the S.A. to arrive. She was holding her purple trench coat with matching hat and her candy was in a bag on the table. She was tapping her foot lightly and humming a random tune.

Then she heard a car pull up and the sound of a bike and she knew it was them. Within a few minutes Ryuu, Jun, Megumi, and Tadashi were standing before her with their coats in one hand and their candy in the other.

"Man, you guys took forever! What kept you?"

'We couldn't find our coats.'

"It wasn't that hard to find."

"Only one shop downtown sells light colored coats. We were lucky to find ours there amongst the other multicolored coats."

"Yeah, and only one shop in the mall sells trench coats and I had to wait for the guy to find mine in the back. I was waiting for over ten minutes and this was all he could find."

"Well show me what all you got."

Everyone held up their coats and hats and Akira nodded in approval. Then they grabbed their candy and dumped it into a pile on the table in front of them. They kept it separate so they'd know which was theirs.

"Alright, this stuff looks great! Just remember to have it all stuffed in your coat pockets for tomorrow. Remember we need to be there at four, so you need to be ready before then."

They all gave her a nod in unison to show that they understood.

They all stayed and talked for awhile, but then it was time to leave. They all went home and started getting their disguise together. Everyone except Tadashi, that is. He went home in search of food first. However, he too would be getting ready. He knew better than to disappoint Akira when it came to Hikari.

* * *

"A/N: I'm sorry that there still seems to be more dialogue, but I'm really trying to cut that down. I would also like to note that even though it's a Thursday, they did go to school. They did all their shopping and whatnot after school was over. So don't go thinking they skipped. Also, dialogue with ' ' around it is Megumi speaking, if you couldn't tell. Anyway, the next chapter will be about the challenge, so stay tuned! Oh and please review!"


	3. Winner or Loser?

It was a half hour until the fair started. Students could be seen setting up the last of the stands and getting everything ready. The middle school students would be bringing paint and paint brushes for Hikari and Takishima to use, so all they had to do was wait.

"I wish you the best of luck, Hikari. You're going to need it if you want to beat me."

"Don't be so cocky, Takishima. I don't need luck to beat you. I have skill."

"Has this skill ever been enough for you to beat me?"

"Not yet, but it will be this time!"

Takishima smirked at Hikari's reaction. She always made such an adorable face when she was determined to destroy him.

Unfortunately for her, Takishima knew what her plan was all along. He knew that she thought she could win more kids over with her personality and demeanor. In a normal situation her plan would work and he would lose. However, he has a plan as well. He knows that as soon as kids see how much faster and better he can paint that they'll leave Hikari and come to him. It was only logical.

After standing around for ten minutes, the duo finally spotted two young middle school students carrying a box of paint and another box of brushes. They approached them and handed over the box. Hikari and Takishima took them and immediately began to set up their stand.

Hikari took the paint and divided it up evenly amongst her and Takishima, while he divided up the brushes. Within five minutes each of them had their own set of paints and brushes neatly displayed out on their stand. They took their seats and began opening their supplies.

"Hey, Takishima, don't we need a cup of water and a rag to clean our brushes?"

"Ah yes, it seems those kids from earlier forgot to bring them."

"What should we do?"

"Well we have a couple of minutes before the fair begins. Let's go in the art room and grab some."

"Is it even open?"

"It should be."

They both got up and headed towards the school. Hikari had serious doubts that the art room would still be open. I mean it was a busy Friday; nobody would be lingering in the school today. However, if they can't get in, there was always the option of asking the janitor for some rags and a paper cup.

As it would happen though, Takishima was right; the art room was still open. They went inside and went in the back room for their supplies.

"If you get the rags I'll get the cups."

"Fine."

Hikari went to the back shelf and grabbed some old rags out of a box and Takishima grabbed two paper cups off the top shelf. They exited the back room and shut off the lights. Then they closed the door and headed back outside.

They made it out just in time too. It was four o'clock on the dot ad people were already heading for their stand. They quickly filled up their cups with water from the nearby water fountain and went back to their seats.

The first few kids they had wanted simple designs done, and they were a bit older, so neither Hikari nor Takishima could use their brilliant plans. However, as more time passed and the fair got busier, so did they. Younger kids flooded their stands and more of them wanted complex designs.

Neither of them refused a customer and they painted their designs as best as they could. A few children left rather dissatisfied with their work, but for the most part kids loved it.

At about seven thirty their student body president made his appearance at their stand.

"So how's everything here, Hikari?"

"Everything's going great. We've been getting a lot of customers!"

"That's wonderful, glad to hear it."

"Pardon my interruption, but when does our stand close? The announcement board didn't say."

"Well since you two are the only ones who signed up for this particular stand, aside from those two middle school girls, your shift ends at ten."

"Ten o'clock? But that'll be six straight hours of work. Do we get a break?"

"I'm sorry Hikari, but no. This stand is far too popular to have one of you leave for a break."

Although Hikari was disappointed not to get a break, she thought optimistically about the situation. She saw it as an opportunity to get more customers.

"By the way, Hikari, how many customers have you had so far?"

"Ah, ah, ah. We don't reveal that kind of information until ten o'clock."

Takishima sighed and refocused his attention on his current customer. He had forgotten what she wanted him to paint and he had to ask again.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"I said I want a unicorn on my cheek!"

"Alright, which one?"

"It doesn't matter!"

This little girl was rather feisty and rude. Takishima blamed it on her having to wait in line for so long. Those middle school girls who were working the stand with them did more gossiping than actual work. Not to mention the work that they did do was mediocre and clearly had no effort put in it. He was surprised that after three and a half hours people were still getting in line for them.

* * *

Meanwhile, a few stands away, Akira, Tadashi, Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi were scattered out in an attempt to bring business Hikari's way. The plan hadn't been working out as well as Akira thought. Sure, the kids took their bribes and went to get their faces painted by Hikari, but it seemed that Kei had just as much business none the less.

After three and a half hours of observation Hikari and Kei still seemed to have just as many kids lining up for them. It was beginning to wear Akira's patience down. So she took out her cell phone and called Tadashi.

"Tadashi?"

"Yes?"

"This isn't working. Kei is getting just as many customers as Hikari!"

"So what do you want me to do?"

"I want you tell Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi that it's time to start working harder. Instead of just bribing kids to go once, get them to go to her and have her do one and then come back and have her do another one."

"So have them stand in line more than once?"

"Yes!"

"I don't know if they'll go for-"

"Just do it, Tadashi!"

"Yes ma'am!"

Akira hung up her phone and began doubling her efforts. Tadashi called up Ryuu, who told Jun and Megumi, and they also put Akira's new plan into action. Well it wasn't really a new plan; it just involved a little more work.

* * *

It was now five minutes to ten and both Hikari and Takishima were worn out. They went through six hours of almost nonstop painting without a break. And now that the fair would be over soon, everyone was standing in line for last minute activities at all the stands.

And when those five minutes passed, Hikari and Takishima finished up their last customer and turned everyone else away. Once they had all cleared out, the middle school kids began cleaning up.

"Well Hikari, it's officially ten o'clock."

"You're right, it is."

"So how many customers did you have?"

"Three hundred and twenty five. And yourself?"

"Three hundred and twenty six. Looks like I win again."

Hikari's eyes went wide and her mouth hung open. She couldn't believe that he beat her _again_.

_No! NO! How did he beat me again? I had this whole thing planned out! _

While Hikari stood dumbfounded, Akira had a breakdown.

"What! How did this happen? We referred so many people to her and she still lost! Kei must have cheated somehow!"

"Face it, Akira: Kei always wins. Hikari's good, but Kei's always one step ahead."

"Shut it, Tadashi!"

Akira then proceeded to punch Tadashi square in the face, which in turn sent him flying a few dozen feet in the air. He landed in a bush a few yards away.

'We're sorry, Akira. We did our best.'

"It has nothing to do with that! He cheated!"

Ryuu sweat-dropped and let out a deep sigh. He knew this was going to happen. Hikari was a great and worthy opponent, but Kei always had a trick up his sleeve. He didn't need to cheat to win.

Fortunately for the rest of the S.A., Hikari and Takishima were too wrapped up with Hikari's loss to notice Akira's outburst.

"Well it looks like you owe me a date now, Miss Number Two."

Hikari gritted her teeth and held her tongue. Not only did she lose, but he was teasing her now.

"Fine. What time and where?"

"This Sunday at noon. I'll be coming by your place to pick you up."

"Are we going anywhere fancy?"

"I wasn't planning on it."

"Alright, fine. This Sunday at noon. I'll be ready."

Takishima smiled and then turned and walked away. He already had all the details for his date planned out.

_See you Sunday, Hikari._

_

* * *

_

"A/N: In case you couldn't tell, italicized print indicates a character's thought. Anyway, I'm glad I finally got this chapter done. I was debating on whether or not to have Kei win like he always does, or to have a twist where Hikari wins for once. It was a tough decision. Oh and I had no idea how many people might actually come to a face painting stand and I had no clue how many customers they'd get amongst four people, so I totally guessed. I'm sorry if it sounds ridiculous! But I hope you liked it, and it'd be great if someone would review."


	4. The Date Part One

It was currently ten o'clock, Sunday morning. Hikari sat up, stretched, and began her morning rituals. She went in and took her shower, brushed her teeth, and combed her hair. After she had done all that, she remembered that she had a date with Takishima.

She ran from the bathroom back into her bedroom and began a mad search for an appropriate outfit. Since she didn't know where they would be going, she had no idea what she should wear. He said it wouldn't be anywhere fancy, so that helped a little. She also factored in that it was spring time, which meant light, casual clothing.

She eliminated any dress clothes, dresses, skirts, and winter clothing she came across. She scanned her selection of blouses and settled on an orange and white stripped one. Then she went over to her dresser drawers and looked for a pair of pants. She decided it was too warm to be wearing jeans, so she picked a pair of faded jean shorts that stopped at her mid-thigh.

She dropped her towel and proceeded to dress herself. Once she finished, she went back into the bathroom and dried her hair. After it was all dry, she ran a comb through it and pulled some of it back into a half ponytail. She quickly finished getting ready and went back into her bedroom.

She tidied it up a bit and then went down for breakfast. When she got downstairs, she couldn't find her parents or brother. She looked around the kitchen and saw that no one had made any breakfast and left some for her. She looked in the fridge for any leftovers that might still be edible, but she found none. She debated back and forth on whether or not to attempt to cook anything for herself, but she decided not to.

She grabbed a banana and poured herself a glass of milk and went back up to her room. She still had forty five minutes until Takishima arrived.

* * *

A shiny black car with the top down pulled up to Hikari's house and parked. The driver got out and made his way up to her front door. He rang her doorbell and waited patiently for her to answer. In no time at all he could hear feet coming down a set of stairs and then the door swung open.

"Hey."

Hikari looked at the man in front of her. He was wearing a plain white, button-up shirt, dark jeans that almost made them look like dress pants, and what looked like very expensive brown leather shoes. He had one hand stuffed in his pocket and the other hanging limply at his side. He looked cool and collected, just like always.

"Hey, Takishima."

"Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, just let me go put my shoes on."

Hikari ran back up to her room to grab her shoes. After looking at how Takishima was dressed, she felt rather underdressed. She didn't know where they going, but it must have been somewhere borderline of being fancy. He was dressed up nice, but nice enough be considered fancy, but he certainly wasn't casual either.

She grabbed her shoes, put them on, and went back downstairs. When she came back, she noticed that Takishima was still standing in her doorway. He was leaning up against the doorframe lazily and staring out towards the street. Hikari blushed momentarily and then quickly made it disappear. It was a good thing she did too because that's when he turned and looked at her.

"Are you ready now?"

"Yes, sorry to keep you waiting."

"Not a problem."

He pushed himself out of her doorframe and began walking back towards his car. Hikari followed behind him. When she saw him opening up the passenger door of the shiny black car, she gasped and let her mouth hang open.

"T-This is your car?"

"Yes, is there something wrong with it?"

"N-No! Not at all. I just wasn't expecting this. Why isn't your driver chauffeuring you around today?"

"I felt like driving myself. My parents bought me this car for my birthday, but I rarely drive it. So I took today as an opportunity to bring it out."

Hikari nodded her head and got in the car. The seats were all leather and she could still smell that new car scent. Needless to say it was a slick ride.

"So, Takishima, where are we going?"

"Don't you worry about that. All you need to do is tell me where you feel like eating for lunch."

"We're going out to lunch?"

"Well it is lunchtime. That's only the beginning, though. There's more to come."

Hikari nodded once again and rattled off the name of some local restaurant for them to go too. Takishima started up his car and put it in drive. They were there within ten minutes.

Inside the restaurant, they had just been seated and handed a menu. Hikari opened hers up and began looking for something to eat. Takishima took one glance at his menu and then looked up at Hikari.

"Why here?"

"What?"

"Why did you pick this place? You know I'm paying for this, right? You could have picked somewhere nicer."

"This is a nice place. I know you have money, but that doesn't mean you have to spend a lot of it, especially on me. Besides, this is my favorite place to eat."

Hikari returned her attention to her menu and Takishima stared at her for a bit longer before returning to his. He smiled and made a mental note about this place. He needed to remember that this was her favorite place to eat.

They placed their orders and ate their food. They made small talk, but ate mostly in silence. It wasn't the awkward, uncomfortable kind of silence, but rather the peaceful and content kind. After they finished eating, Takishima paid the bill and they went back out to his car.

"So where to now, Takishima?"

"You'll see when we get there."

Hikari didn't like not knowing where they were headed, but she didn't press him further on the subject. She just sat in the passenger seat and listened to the radio. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the wind in her hair and the sunshine on her face. It was her favorite thing about spring.

Takishima glanced over at Hikari every once in awhile and smiled. He admired the calm and content look on her face. It looked absolutely adorable on her and it made him blush slightly. But just as Hikari had done earlier, he made the blush disappear just as she opened her eyes.

"Are we there yet?"

"Just about."

Soon enough Takishima was parking his car and opening the door for Hikari.

"The park?"

"Yep. I told you this wasn't going to be fancy. I was trying to be simplistic. Why, what were you expecting?"

"I don't know. I just figured you'd have something more adventurous in mind."

"If you'd like, I can arrange for something a little more exciting, perhaps-"

"No! Don't get me wrong, I love going to the park. It's a wonderful idea. I just wasn't expecting you to be so simplistic and casual about this. You're usually not."

"Well I've come to find that the simpler things in life are much more enjoyable."

"Well this is very nice."

It really did surprise her that he picked something so… so… ordinary. Takishima came from a family of wealth and status. Simple and casual shouldn't be in his vocabulary. It made her wonder where he learned to appreciate such things.

_You're just full of surprises aren't you, Takishima?_

_

* * *

_

"A/N: I'm sorry that it took me awhile to update. I'm currently working on another story and I seriously needed to update that one before I gave anymore thought to this one. I've also been doing a lot of projects for YouTube, and they take a lot of time to complete. Anyway, here's this chapter. P.S. I wasn't intending for Kei to sound harsh. He was just making a statement. Stay tuned for the next one. Please review!"


	5. The Date Part Two

"So what are we going to do here, Takishima?"

"Nothing."

"What do you mean nothing?"

"We aren't going to do anything. We're just walking."

"Eh?"

"Hikari, what do people normally do when they go to the park?"

"Um… take a walk, ride their bikes, clear their heads, sit and-"

"Alright, now think: what could we possibly be doing here?"

"Taking a walk?"

"Exactly."

It was needless to say that Hikari was extremely confused. Takishima seemed to be taking this whole "simplistic" thing to the extreme. It was nice, but it was too out of character for someone like Takishima. He seemed like the kind of guy who _needed_ to be doing something more active and extreme. This was all too weird.

Nevertheless, Hikari continued to walk beside Takishima, trying not to look too suspicious of him. She wanted to ask him so many questions, but his answers were too vague and always seemed to pose more questions.

And as time went by, the questions started to consume Hikari. She finally snapped.

"Alright, Takishima, I want answers! Why are you doing things the simple way?"

"Haven't we already gone over this?"

"It just doesn't make sense. You have all the money in the world; you have no reason to do things the simple way!"

Hikari made an attempt to intimidate Takishima by staring determinedly in his eyes and standing firmly in place in front of him with her hands on her hips.

"Hikari, just because I have money, doesn't mean I can't enjoy simplicity."

"I know that, but-"

"But nothing. What would you say if I told you I was doing this to impress you?"

"Impress me? Why?"

"Think about it: I _do_ have all the money in the world. I've flown you places in a private helicopter, taken you to fancy restaurants, bought you an expensive gown, and chauffeured you places in my private limousine. Yet none of these things have seemed to impress you."

"What do you mean? Of course I was impressed! I-"

"You were impressed by what they were, but it didn't change your opinion of me. You weren't impressed by what I had to offer."

Hikari removed her hands from her hips and stood relaxed. Her stare turned to that of a confused and questioning gaze. She looked into his eyes and started searching for answers. She couldn't figure out why he would want to impress her so much.

"Why do you want to impress me, Takishima?"

He stared boldly into her eyes and grabbed her shoulders. He was tense. He took a deep breath and began to speak.

"Hikari, I lo-"

All of a sudden a loud, high-pitched sound could be heard, and it deafened everyone nearby. Hikari and Takishima covered their ears in an attempt to block out the sound, but did not succeed. Once the sound faded, everyone began looking around to locate its source. Hikari turned and looked behind her and saw the one person capable of making such noise.

"Megumi?"

She spoke barely above a whisper, but Takishima knew what she said. He, too, saw Megumi. She was standing a few yards away by a fountain. Hikari and Takishima walked over to her.

"Megumi, what are you doing here?"

'Oh! Hikari, Kei, I didn't know you were here!'

"Who were you trying to sing too?"

'Um…'

Megumi looked to her left and Hikari and Takishima followed her eyes. They saw who appeared to be Yahiro, lying on the ground, apparently unconscious.

"Yahiro?"

'Yeah…'

"Why were you trying to sing for him, Megumi?"

'N-No reason!'

They both looked at her with suspicion. She sweat-dropped and used her board to cover half of her face. She was hoping they wouldn't see her blush.

Takishima walked over to Yahiro just as he was regaining consciousness. He kneeled down to his level and hovered over him.

"Yo, Yahiro, what's going on?"

"Ugh, what do you need, Kei?"

"I would like to know why Megumi was singing to you."

"Why don't you ask her?"

"I did, but she doesn't want to tell me."

"Well then, why should I?"

Takishima grabbed Yahiro by the collar of his shirt and pulled him towards him until their faces were only a few centimeters apart.

"Because you just ruined a very important moment between Hikari and myself. If you don't want to start a fight, I suggest you answer my question."

"Ha-ha, Kei, you don't scare me. Making threats won't get you what you want."

Just as he was about to speak again, Hikari interrupted.

"Takishima! What are you doing?"

He looked over to Hikari and Megumi and saw that they were both giving him questioning looks. He let go of Yahiro's collar and stood up.

"Nothing. Just making sure he's O.K."

Hikari believed him instantly, but Megumi wasn't so easy to fool. Even she knew that Takishima and Yahiro's relationship wasn't one of friendship. It was more like tolerance.

"Why aren't you with Jun or Ryuu, Megumi?"

'Jun had violin practice and Ryuu had to entertain one of his father's clients. I was all alone today, so I thought I'd come to the park.'

"And sing to Yahiro?"

'Uh, n-no! That's not-'

"Drop it, Hikari. If she doesn't want to tell us, then we have no right to force her. Let's go."

"But what about-"

Takishima grabbed Hikari's wrist and began pulling her away from the fountain. Hikari let him drag her along until he stopped at a lone park bench. The area was secluded and it looked as if they were the only ones there."

Takishima had, had enough interruptions for one lifetime. It seemed as though every time he tried to tell Hikari how he felt, someone or something always got in the way. He was tired of it. She was going to hear him confess to her right now, whether she wanted to or not.

"Takishima, what's-"

"Be quiet."

"What? But I-"

"I said be quiet. Don't you get it? I've been trying to tell you for forever how I feel. Something always gets in the way, though. But not anymore. Hikari, I… I… I love you!"

* * *

"A/N: So I know I haven't updated in forever, but hear me out. I have a job now and now my cousin is in town from California. He's been staying over at my house practically every night since he got here, so I haven't had a lot of time to write. On top of the fact that I have another story I have to update and I have YouTube videos to make, I just haven't felt like writing for this story. I believe that my best work comes when I _feel_ like writing. With that in mind, I don't think this chapter turned out as well as it should have because I didn't feel like writing it. I only wrote it because I felt really bad about not updating in so long. However, I think the next chapter will be the last, so if you can bear with me for just a little while longer, you won't have to wait anymore. I promise that this story will be completed. In the mean time, please review!"


	6. Determining Happiness

_Hikari, I… I… I love you!_

Takishima's last statement echoed in Hikari's head. It played over and over again, and yet, she still couldn't grasp its meaning. She couldn't fathom that those three words were directed at her, especially since they came from _the_ Takishima Kei. Her number one enemy since her early childhood was confessing his love for her. She couldn't believe it.

"Hikari? Hikari. Hikari, please say something. Hika-"

Before Takishima could finish talking, Hikari collapsed. Her face had been candy-apple red ever since he said those words, and to show that she understood, she fainted. She fainted right there on the spot.

Naturally, Takishima caught her before she could hit the ground. She now lied limply in his arms, her face still cherry red, and unconscious. So Takishima did the only thing he could think to do – lay her down on the park bench. He put the majority of her body on the bench itself and then put her head in his lap. She could use him as a pillow.

_Great, now what am I supposed to do? I can't take her home and then leave without knowing how she feels, but I can't really stay here either. This is a private matter and I don't need people walking by and interrupting… again._

Takishima weighed his options and decided to stay. If people walked by right now, all they would see was a cute "love-scene." That idea didn't bother him. It was when she woke up that he'd worry about people showing up. So for now he'd let her sleep. He started to gently stroke her hair as he waited patiently for her to regain consciousness.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Hikari's eyes fluttered open. Her vision was blurred and she could feel a soft motion on her head. She looked up out of the corner of her eye and saw Takishima staring up at the sky, clearly not paying attention. She noticed that it was his hand stroking her hair that she felt. He must be doing it absentmindedly.

_What happened?_

And then she remembered.

"AAAHHHH!"

Hikari leaped up from her position on the bench and backed a couple dozen feet away from Takishima. Her eyes were horror stricken and her mouth hung open. Her heart was pounding hard against her chest and she was gasping for air. Once again, she overreacted.

"What the heck were you doing to me, Takishima?"

"Calm down, Hikari. I wasn't doing anything. You fainted, so I set you on the bench. What's the problem?"

"What's the problem? _What's the problem?_ The problem is that you came out of nowhere and told me you loved me and then I wake up to find you petting my hair! That's the problem!"

"I still don't see why that's an issue."

_Is he insane? This is an obvious problem!_

"How do you not understand this? This is a huge issue! You can't just surprise people like that and then expect them to be O.K. when they wake up halfway on your lap with you-"

"Alright, I understand."

"Huh?"

"I get it. I rushed this and it scared you. But you have to understand where I'm coming from. I've been dropping you hints for as long as I can remember. Some of them were subtle and others were extremely obvious. You never caught on. I've been frustrated for a long time now that you never understood how I felt. The only thing I could think to do was spell it out for you. Put it in a way that no one could misinterpret it. And you didn't. Now you know how I really feel. How I've felt all along. I just need to know, Hikari: How do you feel about me?"

Hikari's eyes were still wide open as she looked at Takishima. She noticed the serious look on his face and the sincerity in his eyes. He meant every word. His body was tense and his eyes were locked onto Hikari's. All they could do was stare at one another until Hikari decided to speak.

"T-Takishima… I had no idea… you cared so much."

"Of course I care."

He stood up from his place on the bench and walked over to where Hikari was. She was still locked a few dozen feet away from him. He never broke eye contact with the frozen girl and when he approached her, he put his hands gently, but firmly on her arms.

"You mean everything to me, Hikari. You're my reason to get up every morning and come to school. The reason I still try in all of my classes, even though I clearly don't need to. You're the reason I'm so protective and always getting into fights. You're the reason I fought Aoi about going to a different school. I didn't want to leave you."

Hikari's eyes seemed to relax as she took everything in. This day had gone from a simple date to an all-out love confession. That's a pretty big transition. Her eyes glossed over a bit like she was going to cry. Part of her felt like she was. She didn't want to hurt Takishima's feelings, but she didn't know what to say. She had never even considered the possibility that she might love him too. She saw him as her best friend and rival. So what on Earth would posses her to think of him as her boyfriend? It just didn't seem right.

"I… I'm sorry, Takishima… I don't know what to say. I don't… I don't know how I feel about you."

Hikari hung her head in sorrow. She didn't want to see the look in his eyes. She hadn't completely rejected him, but she didn't say what he wanted to hear either. She didn't know if he was going to be mad at her lack of an answer or if he would be sad. She doubted he'd tell her that it was O.K. and that he understood. That would be asking for too much.

"O.K."

Hikari's head snapped back up and she looked him square in the eyes, completely confused.

"What?"

"I said it's O.K. It's not the answer I wanted to hear, but it wasn't rejection either. I'll give you some time to think it over. To figure out how you feel. Just let me know when you find out, O.K.?"

He was trying to pull off an 'I'm-fine-and-I-understand-where-you're-coming-from-and-I-can-wait' look, but Hikari knew better. His eyes were a little glossy and he just had an overall sad vibe coming from his entire body. He tried hiding everything with a smile, but even that looked forced and fake. He looked totally crushed and defeated.

"Takishima, I-"

"It's getting late. The day is almost over. I should get you home."

With that being said, he released Hikari's arms and started walking back towards his car. Hikari was on the verge of tears, but she didn't want to cry in front of him. She hung her head again and followed after him.

The car ride home was silent. No one dared to look at each other, let alone talk. Takishima looked straight ahead and kept his eyes on the road, while Hikari looked out her window. She stared at all the houses flying by and really wished she was back in hers. She really needed to clear her head and think. She had to figure out her feelings fast. She didn't want to keep Takishima waiting forever. Something like that can really string someone out and break them down. And with how much emotion and sincerity he put into his words, she knew he would if he had to wait for too long.

That thought was scary. She didn't like knowing that her best friend's happiness suddenly rested on her shoulders. Well, it always had, but she didn't know that. Now she had to figure things out and make a choice that could make or break Takishima, and determine their relationship.

_What am I supposed to do?_

_

* * *

_

"A/N: Yeah, so I've decided that this definitely won't be the last chapter. There could be many more, now that I think about it. We'll see how it goes and if I can come up with more things to make this story interesting. Anyway, I'm sorry it took me so long to update. School and work literally consume my life now. I tried to make Hikari act like she would in the series, with the ridiculous and overdramatic reaction, but I don't think I did a very good job. As much as I try to keep characters in-character I hate the over-dramatization when it's written. It works in the anime, but in a story it just seems childish and not well written in my opinion. But I tried. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think."


	7. The Day After

The next morning was extremely nerve-wracking for Hikari. She went through her morning routine slowly, hoping that it would also slow time and give her more time to figure things out. It didn't. Then she walked to school with her head hung down, hoping to avoid everyone who might distract her. She wanted her immediate focus to be on the matter at hand. However, when she arrived at the school yard, her hopes were crushed.

"Ah! It's Hikari, from the S.A.!"

"You look so pretty today, Hikari!"

Comments were coming at her left and right and she gave the crowd her usual sweat-dropped, annoyed face. She didn't understand the big fuss about being in the S.A. How did it make her so much more superior to the rest of the student body? In her eyes, it didn't.

"Hikari!"

Akira came flying out of nowhere and tackled Hikari, locking her in a bear hug. She loudly and obnoxiously questioned her best friend about the date that Takishima 'so rudely forced on her.'

"I'll tell you on the way to the greenhouse."

As the two girls set off for the greenhouse, Tadashi followed surreptitiously behind them. He had the intention of sneaking up behind Akira to scare her. He was feeling bold today. As soon as he got within striking distance though, he stopped and listened in to their now interesting conversation.

"Is that all that happened?"

"Well, later on we went to the park. It was nice. We ran into Megumi and Yahiro-"

"What was my darling Megumi doing with that monster?"

"Calm down, Akira. I don't know, Takishima pulled-"

"This is an outrage! First, Takishima forces a date upon you, and then that creeper has the nerve to go out with _my_ sweet, angelic Megumi! What is wrong with people? Do they want to die?"

By this point they had entered the greenhouse. Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi were giving Akira a confused look until her name was mentioned, in which case, the attention was focused on Megumi.

"You were out with someone, Megumi?"

'No, of course not! I was at the park and he just happened to be there.'

"Who was it?"

'Yahiro...'

Ryuu and Jun gave Megumi a confused yet wary look before turning their attention back to Akira. She was crying for a moment into Hikari's jacket, but then Tadashi made one of his usual, stupid comments, and she unleashed a fit of misdirected rage onto him. And, as usual, he took off running before being beaten senseless and then went flying into the air, landing God only knows how far away.

"How did your date with Takishima go, Hikari?"

It was Ryuu's turn to make conversation. Hikari walked over to their table and sat down in her usual chair. She set her bag down and took out her cell phone.

"Oh, it went fine."

"Really? You don't sound to certain."

Just as she was about to continue, a certain tall, brown-haired boy walked into the greenhouse. He had a stack of papers tucked under his arm and was fiddling with his phone. Although he appeared to not be paying attention, he had no trouble dodging a frightened Tadashi whom was running from a still angry Akira. How he managed to do that was beyond anyone.

"Good morning, Kei."

Naturally Ryuu was the only level-headed one here. Tadashi and Akira were caught up in their usual violent routine, while Jun and Megumi were too quiet to say anything, and with Hikari being so distraught by yesterday, she wasn't her normal, cheerful self. He was the only normal one here today.

"Morning."

Takishima pulled out his chair and set his stuff down. Then he took his seat and put his phone in his pocket. Without making eye contact with anyone, he grabbed the papers he had tucked under his arm and spread them out on the table. They were clearly important business papers, each one reading 'Important!' on the top. He then quickly categorized them according to his own importance, or so they assumed, and he began sifting his eyes over them. With not a word being uttered by anyone, it became awkwardly silent.

Akira and Tadashi settled down after awhile when he decided to wave the white flag of surrender. He then sat bandaged up in his chair, waiting for Akira to appear with their morning tea and snacks. Ryuu decided to go tend to his animals, so naturally the twins followed after him, not wanting to share his company with them. That left Takishima and Hikari to sit in silence.

And even though it appeared that Takishima was just working and completely level-headed, he wasn't. He was trying to use the business papers as a distraction from the woman sitting next to him. She was obviously nervous and he knew there was no point in asking her for an answer today. She wasn't ready to give one.

But Hikari let her eyes wander back and forth between her lap and him. She wanted to give him an answer, but she knew she didn't have one to give. Her heart was pounding and her stomach was turning. Confusion and guilt were eating away at her nerves and the feeling intensified when he was around. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. She was going to break the silence.

"Akira, hurry up in there! I want snacks now!"

Until Tadashi did it for her.

"Hush, Tadashi! It's almost ready!"

"Ugh, why does she have to take so long?"

The question wasn't really directed at anyone, but Hikari wanted to get rid of the awkwardness with conversation, so she answered.

"She just wants it to be perfect is all. Be patient, Tadashi."

"But I don't care if it's perfect, I'm hungry now, and as long as it's edible I'll be fine."

"She doesn't just cook for you though, and she takes pride in it, so let her make it however she wants."

Tadashi hung his head for a moment and then flicked it back up and smiled.

"You're right, Hikari. Her stuff always tastes better when she puts more time into it anyway."

Hikari smiled back at him in agreement and managed to carry on a conversation until Akira arrived. She brought out her tray of sweets and tea and then threw a hissy fit when she saw that half the group was missing. Hikari made an attempt to calm her down while Tadashi stuffed his face. Everything would have been fine if Takishima wasn't so buried in his work and chimed in like he normally would.

"Kei, I made this stuff for everyone. Take your tea and sweets already!"

Akira was always this hostile sounding when talking to him, and he usually responded with sarcasm or nothing at all, but today was different. Today he stood up abruptly and grabbed his things. He pushed in his chair and walked out the door.

"What was that all about? That little jerk!"

"Is something wrong with Kei?"

"Takishima..."

"Did something happen yesterday that you didn't tell me, Hikari?"

Now both Akira and Tadashi were staring at her and she felt more than backed into a corner. She had no choice but to respond.

"Well after we saw Megumi and Yahiro he kind of... sort of... told me he... loves me..."

Both Akira and Tadashi let their mouths hang open in shock. They knew that Takishima had liked Hikari for awhile now, but they never thought he'd tell her. Akira felt like her head was swelling up and was going to explode, but Tadashi was less dramatic. As Akira had her little episode, Tadashi prompted a question that Hikari couldn't ignore.

"So, what did you say to him?"

* * *

"A/N: Yeah, there's no good reason for my absence. I'm just lazy. But here's the next chapter, I hope you enjoyed it, even though it feels rushed to me. Reviews would be greatly appreciated."


	8. Realization

Hikari poured her heart out to Akira. She told her everything from beginning to end and ended up in tears. Akira wrapped her in a hug and tried to comfort her while repressing her somehow deeper hatred for Kei. How dare he put her best friend in a situation like this. Tadashi just sat back, unsure of what to say or do, and shook his head. He was sad for both of them. He was sad for Hikari being so torn and confused about what to do, but he was also sad for Kei for having to wait for an answer. Saying I love you to someone and not hearing it back is a bad feeling, but it hurts even more to say it and have someone hesitate and say that they don't know.

So over the next couple of days, things were tense and quiet. Tadashi filled in Ryuu, Jun, and Megumi and they all tried to be supportive of Hikari and stay out of Kei's way. They knew he didn't want their sympathy and that he just wanted to be left alone. Akira tried her best to comfort Hikari and she even tried helping her search for an answer, despite her hatred of the idea of those two being together. It didn't take away her fury and anger towards him, though, for putting her in this situation.

On Thursday night, Hikari decided to go for a walk to clear her head. She couldn't seem to spend enough time trying to do that, but she always felt somewhat closer to her answer when she went out alone. She had a ton of stuff to do that day, and she didn't finish until dark, but she went out anyway. She grabbed her hoodie and tennis shoes and went out walking. She decided to go along that path that Tadashi showed her on their "date."

As she was walking, she took long, deep breaths in an attempt to calm her nerves and help her concentrate. She let her mind wander back to their date and she replayed it over and over in her head until she could recite everything perfectly. She sighed for the hundredth time that day and looked straight ahead. She could see a little body of water and she thought about the day when Tadashi first showed it to her. She smiled momentarily as she recalled him telling her why he liked exploring so much and why he did the things he did. He was such a goofball.

Then everything changed. She started looking back on past memories of her and Takishima. She remembered when she first met him and how he beat her so easily. She remembered all their matches and how he'd always win and call her "Miss Number Two." She remembered freaking out on him for calling her that and training harder to prove him wrong. She remembered going on their trip and being held hostage by Yahiro and him having to come save her. He was so worried and scared. She also remembered caring for him when he was sick and how he kissed her that night.

Remembering their kiss triggered something inside Hikari. She blushed furiously and felt a wave of butterflies swarm in her stomach. It was a strange feeling and she was unsure how to react. She had never really had a crush on a boy before. Not that she didn't like boys, but she never paid much attention to them. She was always focused on beating Takishima and being the best to worry about them. Was this funny feeling supposed to mean something?

The more she thought about it, the more aggravated she became. She couldn't place this feeling, no matter how hard she tried. She pondered it more and more, until another memory surfaced and played in her head. She remembered when Takishima left and her and her friends had to go after him. They flew all the way to another country in hopes of bringing him back. She surprised him in his office and they had one last challenge. Skipping over all the rest of the details, she fast forwarded to where they had leapt off the side of the building after the flower and the kiss they had while in midair.

Her blushed deepened, if that was even possible, and enhanced her current mysterious feeling. She couldn't take not knowing what it meant. She walked over to the little body of water, a pond, if that's what it could be called, and she knelt down and looked at her reflection. She saw the deep shade of red spread across her face. She put her hand to her forehand to see if maybe she was just getting sick. If she was, these were some bizarre symptoms, and she had no idea what sickness she could possibly have. However, she felt no abnormal warmth and let out a frustrated sigh. She cupped some of the water in her hands and splashed it onto her face. She rubbed her eyes and stared back at her reflection for a little while longer.

"Ugh, this is so stupid! What's wrong with me? Why do I feel this way? What's causing all of this?"

She knew no one was around to answer her, but she felt somewhat relieved by verbalizing her problems. Talking to herself, or, as she would say, talking to no one, always seemed to make her feel better. She decided to sit on the grass by the pond and stare at herself, subconsciously hoping that her mirrored self would have the answers she was after. After several minutes of nothing, though, she knew her hopes were just wishful thinking.

She put one of her fingers lightly on the surface of the water and stirred it in a small circle, making the water ripple outwards. As she stirred the water, she also began to hum quietly to herself. What she was humming, she did not know, but it was a very calming melody and she needed a whole lot of peacefulness and serenity right now. She needed to gather her thoughts and sort out her feelings.

Her mind wandered back to a night when she was staying over at Akira's house. They had just finished eating and went up to Akira's room to get ready for bed. Later on into the night, Akira rolled over and looked at her. Out of nowhere, she had asked Hikari who she was in love with. Her question was followed shortly by a remark of, "if it's Kei, I'll kill him now."

Hikari looked wide-eyed at her friend and contemplated her question. She honestly hadn't thought about it and therefore didn't know who she was in love with. She supposed it was no one, since no one came to mind. When she told her friend, she was relieved. Then Akira went on and on about how she would have dreaded the answer being Kei, and so forth. Now it was Hikari's turn to surprise Akira with a question of her own. She asked her how to tell if someone was in love. Akira let out a bubbly sigh and responded casually.

_"You just know. It's a feeling that you get deep down inside your heart. You get butterflies in your tummy and you can hardly breathe when they're around you. Your heart melts when you're with them and you feel absolutely free and safe with them. It's a feeling that varies from person to person, but there are certain things that always stay the same. It's an indescribable feeling that you just... know."_

Thinking back to that night, Hikari tried to recollect of the symptoms Akira had said come with being in love. She remembered getting butterflies and having a hard time breathing around Takishima. She remembered always feeling free and safe. She especially remembered her heart melting when they kissed. The wheels in her head started to turn and pretty soon they were spinning at a speedy rate. It was almost as if a light bulb had turned on inside her head, because everything was finally becoming clear to Hikari.

Maybe, just maybe she...

"I... love him..."

She took a moment to let that sink in. The more that thought resounded in her head, the more right it started to sound. It was very well possible that that was the feeling she had been experiencing all night. After a little more time to soak it all in, she accepted it. She was in love with Takishima Kei.

She stood up from her place on the grass and took one last look at her reflection. A tint of pink was still evident on her face, but her eyes held a look of confidence and determination rather than frustration. She balled her hands into fists and turned and ran off. She knew she needed to get home and get some sleep. She decided on confronting Takishima tomorrow, so she needed to prepare. Can't be ready for something like that if you haven't slept all night.

She made it home quickly and did everything quietly. She made sure not to slam any doors or step on any squeaky floorboards as she crept back up to her room. Thankfully, her parents nor her brother heard her. She kicked off her shoes and crawled back into bed, tired and restless at the same time. She was anxious for tomorrow, but exhausted by everything that had just occurred. She was mentally worn out.

She snuggled into bed deeper and closed her eyes, begging sleep to overtake her. She tried thinking about what she would say to him. How was she going to approach this situation? How was he going to react? Would he be glad that she felt the same way or would he be upset that it took her so long to figure out? How mad would he be that she actually had to think about her feelings for him? She knew she could be dense sometimes, but even she knew that something like this wasn't something that people should have to think about. They should just know.

However many questions she had, she finally got her wish of being whisked off to sleep. She fell asleep with more questions than answers, but there was no way to predict his reaction. He was hurt and vulnerable right now, so he could react in a multitude of ways. All she could do was hope for the best and pray she didn't screw this up. After all, now she knew she was in love with him, and she knew she wanted him to know it and accept her. She wanted to be with him now, it seemed, almost as bad as he had wanted to be with her. Maybe that was something she couldn't even fathom, but she guessed it anyway. Only tomorrow would tell what her future held.

* * *

"A/N: My overly-ridiculous absence had an excuse, but it ended like three weeks ago. I've just been a little lazy. I'm also super busy too, so when I do have free time, my laziness takes over. So, I've had the time, but because of how busy I am, I had other things I wanted to do? Yeah, let's go with that. Expect more long intervals like this, but I don't know how many times I have to say this story will be completed. If I left a story on this site without completing it, I'd go nuts. Literally, it would eat away at me. As long as you can tolerate my crazy intervals, this will be completed. Sorry and thank you for your patience, I know I'm not worthy. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review!"


	9. The Unintentional Monster

The next morning seemed to go by in an instant. Hikari jumped out of bed when her alarm clock went off and she quickly showered, got dressed, ate breakfast, and hurried out the door for school. She sprinted the entire way to the greenhouse and she had to skid to a halt before she ran into the table. Only Akira was there at the moment, the others still getting ready and on their way, so she threw her stuff into her chair. Akira popped her head out from the kitchen and stared awkwardly at her friend. She wanted so bad to go out and question her, but she knew that she would be of no help to this matter. After spilling her heart out yesterday, Akira realized that, although to her displeasure, this was something Hikari had to work out on her own.

Hikari didn't even attempt to take her seat, knowing well in fact that Takishima wouldn't arrive for awhile. She pulled her phone out and checked the time. She had at least fifteen minutes before he would even potentially be in the greenhouse. So, she did one of the many things she did best - she ran. She took off back out the door and began running around the schoolyard. She passed everyone with unrealistic speed as she made her way to the schools field. She casually merged onto the track and did a few laps, passing the same group of people a few times. Then she took off back the way she came and ran towards several other various places close by.

When the fifteen minutes were up, she came bursting through the greenhouse doors, yet again, and stopped in front of the table. Jun, Megumi, Ryuu, and Tadashi were all seated and eating some of Akira's delicious sweats while waiting for her to bring out the tea. Jun and Megumi stared surprisingly at Hikari, a little startled by her entrance. Ryuu was about to ask her what was going on, but Tadashi beat him to it.

"Whoa, what's up, Hikari? Something happen?"

"No, not yet! Where's Takishima?"

"Don't you know?"

Akira took that as her cue to come out with the tea. She knew what Tadashi was going to say and she didn't want him to dim the light in Hikari's eyes. As much as she hated it, she knew Hikari figured out her feelings for Kei and that she loved him. She had always wanted to deny it, but she knew that Kei had always loved Hikari, and that deep down inside, Hikari had always loved him, too. It was inevitable and it made her stomach churn, but she knew that for the sake of her best friend's happiness, she would have to step aside.

"Know what?"

Before Tadashi could answer, Akira stepped in. She quickly set the tea cups on the table, and after pouring everyone else a cup, she practically forced the entire pot of it down Tadashi's throat. He felt oddly like he was drowning and when the tea stopped flowing, he went flying. Akira shoved her fist violently under his chin and sent him flying through the greenhouse roof. He landed somewhere far off and on something easily breakable, judging by the loud crash. Akira waved her arms as a bit of a distraction and offered to make Hikari some more tea.

"No thanks, Akira. What don't I know?"

"Oh, nothing. It's Tadashi, so it's probably nothing important. Come on, let me make you something."

Akira grabbed her hand and led her off to the kitchen. Hikari sensed that she was trying to hide something and jerked her hand back. Akira spun around to give her a look of confusion, but Hikari had her back turned to her and had her eyes set on Ryuu.

"Ryuu, what was Tadashi going to say?"

Ryuu looked past Hikari to Akira and she was giving him a fierce glare. As terrified as of her as he was, though, he gulped and pressed on.

"Um, well, you see... Takishima won't be here... for a couple weeks..."

"What? Why not!"

Hikari ran up to Ryuu and she grabbed his shirt. She looked him square in the eye. He had a look of terror, while she had a wild and petrified look. He looked over to Jun and Megumi for assistance and noticed that they had backed far away from the frantic girl. Megumi pulled out her notepad and scribbled something down.

'He's away on business. His father couldn't make it, so he took his place.'

"What?"

Jun cowered behind his sister, but made an effort to calm his friend.

"He'll only be gone for two and a half weeks. That's not too bad."

Hikari let her face twist into one of horror and defeat. She let go of Ryuu's shirt and he quickly went to stand by the twins. They watched, along with Akira, as Hikari slowly fell to her knees. She let her hair hide her face and her eyes bored holes in the floor as she stared at it with disbelief. Akira walked over to her friend and crouched down beside her. She put a hand on her shoulder and tried to comfort her. Even though she knew, she asked anyway...

"Hikari, what's wrong?"

"I...I figured it out. I was... going to tell him... today..."

Akira closed her eyes and slightly nodded her head. Jun, Megumi, and Ryuu weren't completely aware of the situation, so they settled on going out to find Tadashi while the girls had their moment. After they left, Hikari pulled her phone out again and started sifting through her contacts. She stopped on Takishima's number and lingered for a moment. Was this really something she wanted to tell him over the phone? No, she knew this was something better done in person.

"Hikari, please don't be too upset. He's not gone because of anything you did or didn't do. He'll be back in no time and I'm sure hearing what you have to say will brighten his spirits after two and a half weeks of business meetings."

That didn't help at all. Why was it that when she finally realized her feelings, the one person she needed to express them to was gone? And for so long, too.

Hikari stood up, hair still hiding her face. She turned towards her best friend and grabbed her shoulders. Her eyes were filled to the brim with tears, but she refused to let them fall. She took a deep breath and tightened her grip on Akira's shoulders. She was mustering up the courage to speak, fearful that her voice might crack and break.

"Where... where is he? Do you know where he's staying?"

It was so quiet, barely above a whisper, but Akira heard her nonetheless. She nodded and retrieved all necessary information from her phone. Tadashi had sent it to her in a text last night. No one was quite sure why he had been the person Kei notified of his sudden trip, but he quickly passed along the information to Akira. She, in turn, forwarded it to Jun, Megumi, and Ryuu, but she refused to send it to Hikari. At the time, she had been unsure of her best friends' condition and was unsure of how that kind of news would affect her.

"Thank you, Akira."

Hikari grabbed her bag from her chair and, once again, took off like a speeding bullet. She passed by several groups of students, all of them big S.A. fans, especially personal fans of hers, but she ignored them. She ignored everybody and just ran. Akira knew where she was headed and put in a phone call to her father to have a plane ready and waiting for her. Her hatred for Kei only seemed to grow as time passed. It didn't matter that his hurting Hikari was completely unintentional; she would still unleash her fury on him. However, right now her main concern was fulfilling her duty as Hikari's best friend, and as said best friend, she had no choice but to do whatever it took to get Hikari in the same country, in the same city as said unintentional-monster. Her father agreed to have one of his many jets waiting at the airport and he gathered a flight crew as quickly as possible. The girl would be there any moment.

* * *

"A/N: I feel very obligated to update my stories in response to their last update. I'm currently working on an Outlaw Star story and after I last updated this one, it was due for a new chapter. However, due to the many recent reviews this one received, I felt it deserved more attention. Blah, blah, blah, and as always, this story will be completed. If it isn't, it's because I died, plain and simple. So, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please be on the lookout for the next one and feel free to leave a review."


	10. New York City

The clouds were much prettier thirty-thousand feet in the air and Hikari couldn't help but stare pleadingly at them. It was as if she were begging them to let her find Takishima and pour her heart out to him. Although she knew that clouds couldn't grant wishes, she needed something to hold on to. Ever since she boarded the jet, she had become unnaturally quiet and depressed. A few hours ago, she was overflowing with energy and slight rage, but now all she felt was tired and nervous. Despite longing to finally let him know how she felt, she couldn't help but feel like she was too late. Maybe he had given up on her returning his feelings and that's why he left. He left to straighten himself out and pull himself together so he could move on.

No matter what his reason was, it was too late to turn back. She was about to land at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City and a car would be waiting to take her to The Roosevelt Hotel, where Takishima was staying. Tadashi called her to let her know that he would be in meetings for a few hours after she got there and that she should try and find something to do until about five o'clock. Then she could check back at the hotel and talk with him.

So Hikari let her driver drop her off and she went inside to confirm that he was indeed staying at this hotel. Now that she knew he was definitely going to be here, she took it upon herself to find her way around the boisterous city. She walked up and down countless streets until she finally found what appeared to be a park. There was a tall gate around the area and a sign that said Madison Square Park, though she couldn't read it. She followed the gate until she saw the entrance and walked inside, staring in awe the size of the jungle gym and all of the kids climbing on it. They were running and laughing, crossing bridges and monkey bars, and playing all sorts of games.

She passed by all the excitement, smiling at the carefree atmosphere, and made her way over to the swing set. She found an empty swing and saw the little girl next to her look at her curiously. She tried to smile at her, but the kid just gave her a funny look and then turned away. Hikari hung her head slightly, feeling awkward and out of place, but she couldn't bring herself to leave. She checked her wristwatch and she had three hours until she needed to be back at the hotel. So she did the only thing she could think to do: push off the ground and start swinging.

An hour passed rather quickly, what with all of the new sights, sounds, and smells to take in. Hikari watched all the people pass by and the children playing. She could smell food from a nearby hotdog stand and a kids packed lunch, along with various other city scents. The thing that captivated her the most, though, was the sound of other people's voices. The English language and the multitude of accents were extremely fascinating. She saw a lot of tourists from all over the country and the globe, and marveled at how different they all sound. Although she couldn't recognize it herself, she heard a southern accent, an English accent, a Brooklyn accent, and hundreds of other ones that she didn't recognize. It was only when she heard two teenage Japanese boys talking about school that she understood anything.

But after that hour, time seemed to move at an incredibly slow pace and Hikari found herself being bored with the swing. So she hopped off and within a matter of seconds, three little kids came racing towards it, all of them pushing and shoving each other to claim it. She decided to go for a walk through the rest of the park, not realizing how big it really was and how easy it was to get lost. She just let her feet carry her to wherever as she pulled her iPod out of her backpack. She put in her earbuds and pressed play and then put it on shuffle. She let Do As Infinity play as she took in more sights. She couldn't help but muse over the fact that there was so little grass and that there were so many different types of people gathered in one place.

Although, she remembered learning about America in her World History class and she was now remembering that they called this particular city a "concrete jungle" and "the city that never sleeps." It was so fitting, she thought, as she watched the cars crowd in the street, outside the gate. She put her hands in her coat pocket and kept walking, reminding herself not to wander too far away from the entrance to the playground. She was trying hard to remember the way back to the hotel from there and thought she had a pretty good idea.

All of a sudden, she felt something vibrate and pulled out her cell phone. She looked down and saw that she had a new text message from Akira. She opened it and it read:

_Hikari, I take it you landed safely and made it to the hotel? I know Tadashi told you to keep yourself busy, but BE CAREFUL! You're in a foreign country all by yourself and you need to watch yourself. I hope everything works out for you and I want to hear all about it when you get back._

_~Akira~_

She smiled at the concerned message from her friend, but failed to watch where she was going and ended up bumping into a young man talking on his phone. As she was about to apologize, he gave her a dirty look and muttered something in English that Hikari assumed wasn't good. He didn't have a nice tone of voice. She stepped off to the side, hoping to get out of everyone's way, and replied to Akira. Then she put her phone back in her pocket and continued her walk.

She managed to listen to eight songs before she saw another sign and what looked to be an exit. Hikari looked around for the playground, wondering if she had gone in a complete circle. However, there was no playground in sight and that made her panic slightly. She looked at her wristwatch again and saw that she only had an hour and fifteen minutes to find her way back. So she quickly turned on her heel and sprinted back in the direction she came from, hoping that she had just gone straight and that she would wind up back where she started.

* * *

Kei tugged on his tie, attempting to loosen it without looking unprofessional. He had been at meetings all day with a bunch of CEO's from several different companies. After hours of nothing but business talk, he couldn't wait until he was out of the lobby and in his car on his way back to the hotel. And just when he closed the car door behind him, his phone went off. Groaning and praying to God that it wasn't business related, he pulled his phone out and flipped it open. He had a new text message from Akira. Rubbing his temples, he could only image what she would have to say to him. He hadn't even been gone for a full day and she already had something to yell at him about. He opened the message and read it to himself.

_Kei, you wretched, evil snake! I just got a text from Hikari saying she got lost! She's running around aimlessly in some park in New York City. She came after you, so now it's your job to protect her and keep her safe. If anything happens to my little angel, I swear I'll kill you! GO FIND HER!_

_~Akira~_

He went wide-eyed when he found out she had followed him here. The only way she would have known where he was is if she talked to Tadashi. He smacked his forehead and growled, cursing himself for telling _him_ where he was going. Cursing under his breath, he pounded on the window in front of him, trying to get the drivers attention. When the window was rolled down, he poked his head through and began barking orders.

"Listen, I need to get to the closest park near the hotel. Do you know where it is?"

"Yes, but sir, what ever for?"

"Just do it, I need to get there quickly."

The driver nodded his head and rolled the window back up. Kei sat back in seat, head in his hands and sighed. He looked up and out the window, watching all the cars go by and the lights dance. It would be much more magnificent when it got darker out, but it was still a sight to behold. As he watched the world around him, his mind was reeling with questions. What was Hikari doing in New York? Why did she follow him? What on Earth was she doing at the park? How did she get there? What was she thinking?

He just couldn't figure this girl out. She avoided him when he was back home, but she flew all the way to a different country after him. She was lost and needed help, but instead of calling on him, she told her best friend who was thousands of miles away that she was lost. It just didn't make any sense... _she_ didn't make any sense. Though, that was one of the things he liked about her. All of the little confusing things that she did were cute, but sometimes they worried him. Things like this usually got her in trouble or put her in danger and he feared that one day he wouldn't be there to help her. It sent chills down his spine to even think things like that.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when his driver rolled down the window and announced that they had arrived. Kei got out and stared in awe at the sheer size of the park. He recognized it instantly and was immediately frustrated. Only Hikari could go off and get lost in one of, if not the largest, park in New York City. He told his driver that he would take things from here and not to wait for him. He didn't know how long he'd be running around this place in search of her, but there was no point in him waiting around. He waved him off and scampered into the nearest entrance and began to frantically scan the area for Hikari.

_Hikari, you had better be safe._

* * *

"A/N: We're going to skip my usual this-is-why-I-haven't-updated speech and go straight to the I-hope-you-enjoyed-this-chapter segment. I know that I neglect updating this story, but I think it's almost done. Another chapter or two and it should be complete... maybe. I don't plan out my stories, I just kind of write them as I go along. So, yeah, we'll see what happens. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and, as always, reviews are loved and appreciated."


	11. Reciprocation

After scanning the entire playground, Kei was suddenly stopped and he smacked himself gently in the forehead. He felt like an idiot for even beginning his search without calling Hikari. He could call her and ask her where she was at. She might not be able to give him specifics, but she could give him landmarks and clues to make this whole process easier. So he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and began to quickly dial her number. The phone rang a few times before a meek sounding voice came over the line.

"Hello?"

"Hikari! What were you thinking when you followed me here? Why did you wander off on your own? Are you alright? Where are you?"

He fired questions at her left and right, but all he got was silence in return. He heard a lot of noise in the background and before he could berate her again, she responded.

"I... I'm not sure where I'm at, but there's a fountain with a small iron gate surrounding it. How... how did you know I was here?"

"How do you think? Akira sent me an angry text and ordered me to come and find you. I can't believe you followed me here!"

"I'm sorry, Takishima..."

He took a step back and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself. He hadn't realized he'd been yelling and he knew he was giving Hikari the wrong idea. He wasn't mad at her for following him, in fact, it excited him. He could only think of one reason for her to go to the lengths she has, but he didn't want to get his hopes up. He knew how dense she could be.

"No, Hikari, don't worry about it... Just please stay where you are and wait for me to get there. Can you do that for me?"

"...Yes..."

He nodded to himself and hung up the phone. He managed to stop a couple of nice people and ask them directions on how to get to the fountain. He was inwardly praising himself for taking and passing English with flying colors, because without it, his task would be much more difficult. So he sprinted away from the playground and went straight ahead, praying to God that Hikari would indeed be there waiting for him.

Along the way, he let his mind wander back to the fact that she was even here. He figured it had to be because she wanted to talk to him about his confession to her. She must have finally had an answer for him. However, he figured she could also be here to scold him for taking off without telling her. It wasn't very likely, but it was still possible. He figured the only reason he even had such thoughts was to prevent himself from being crushed if she wasn't here for the reasons he thought she was. She had a way with getting his hopes up and then completely demolishing them. She never did it on purpose and in a way, that made it ten times more painful.

But if she was here to scold him, then he'd simply shake his head at her and put her on the first flight back home. There was no real appropriate way to handle that situation other than to let her attack him and then send her off. But judging by the sound of her voice on the phone, she wasn't angry. She sounded sad and nervous, maybe even a little hurt. It was hard to explain, but something told him she wasn't going to freak out on him.

That only left his first assumption and his hope. If she was here to finally answer him, he could expect one of two things: she would either tell him that she loved him too, or she would flat out reject him. Sure, she would probably want to remain friends or at least rivals, but if she turned him down, things would never be the same. It would be extremely difficult for him to show up at the greenhouse every morning like he did and sit next to her. It would be hard to be in the same classes as her. It would be hard to accept her challenges and have his usual enthusiasm about them. Everything that involved her would be ridiculously hard and heartbreaking.

He decided to prepare himself for rejection first, though. If she did tell him that she didn't love him back, he told himself that he would not let her see him falter. He didn't want to cry, try and hide his face, or do anything out of the ordinary. He knew that she was always concerned about people's feelings and she'd be especially worried about his. He didn't want her to see how much pain he would be in, but he was fortunate and unfortunate in the fact that he'd be in America for a little while longer. It would give him time to compose himself and prepare to face her back at home. On the downside, it'd probably affect the way he did business and he didn't want to screw anything up for his father's company because of this.

He would have to take some time out to accept the fact that she didn't care for him like he cared for her and he'd have to move on. The hardest thing to do, though, was going to be seeing others guys all over her and knowing that he no right to stop them. Hikari was a great fighter, despite all of his teasing, and if a guy tried something with her that she didn't like, she could easily overpower him and put him back in his place. But what he feared most was that she was going to _like_ one of those boys and pursue a relationship with them. She wasn't going to be single forever and if she wasn't with him, she'd be with someone else.

Realizing that he was putting himself in a depressed state of mind, he quickly switched to thinking about what he'd do if she told him she loved him back. Was there a way to prepare for that? He could say he'd be overjoyed and he'd hug her and kiss her, but he also thought that he might be too shocked to move. He couldn't quite predict how he'd react if she loved him, too, but he knew one thing: he'd be the happiest man alive.

All of his musing finally came to an end when he saw the fountain in sight. He slowed down a bit and looked around for Hikari. He quickly saw her standing on the other side of the fountain and he tried to make his way over to her casually. As he got closer, he saw that she was still in her S.A. uniform. Something about her in that uniform, along with being in New York, made his heart race. Her blue skirt and long black hair flowed lightly in the wind, while her white jacket held her green tie in place and hugged her curves nicely. He had always thought that she was exceptionally beautiful, especially in their school uniform, but something about the bright lights, the trees and nature mixed with the concrete, and the gorgeous fountain behind her, made her look absolutely gorgeous.

"Hikari."

She jumped slightly at the sound of her name, but was glad to see the familiar face of the man who said it. She turned to face him, but something wasn't right. Her usual bright and excited expression was replaced with a nervous, almost sad one. Her gray eyes were dimmer and cast down to her feet, while her smile was almost sad looking. She had a hint of pink to her cheeks and she was nervously playing with her hair. Concerned and a little scared of what she had to say, Takishima reached out and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Is something wrong, Hikari?"

"Ah, no... everything's fine."

"You don't look fine to me."

Her eyes were still refusing to meet his and she started to twiddle her thumbs out of another nervous habit she had. The silence was thick and almost suffocating, so Takishima tried to press the conversation on in hopes of her answering all of his questions.

"Why did you follow me, Hikari? Akira told me that you came after me, but she didn't say why."

After more painful silence, she took a deep breath and decided that it was now or never to do what she came to do.

"I... I had something I wanted to tell you. It needed to be face-to-face and I just couldn't wait for you to get back home."

"What did you want to tell me?"

"Well... it's about what you said on our date. About you being in love with me."

"Yes, go on."

She took another deep breath and shuffled her feet. She hung her head even lower and bit her lip, trying to force the answer out of herself. She was so afraid that she was too late and that he already gave up on her. If he didn't love her anymore, she didn't know what she was going to do. Everything was going to be so awkward back in the greenhouse, but it was going to be even more uncomfortable to be standing in front of him right now. She tried to banish such negative thoughts and with one more deep breath, she let it all out.

"I wanted to apologize for making you wait so long for an answer from me. You knew from the beginning how you felt and it must have taken a lot of courage to tell me like you did. Love is one of those things that people shouldn't have to think about - they should just know. Even though I didn't know right away like you did, I've come to the conclusion that I... I love you, too, Takishima!"

She quickly gripped his shirt and buried her face in his chest. She couldn't bare to see the look on his face out of fear that it wouldn't be a happy expression. And he just stood there, eyes wide open, clearly in shock. His heart felt like it had almost come to a complete stop before he felt it start to beat like mad. He could have sworn it was going to burst from his chest at any moment. He instinctively wrapped his arms around the frightened girl and held her tightly. With one arm, he kept a firm grip on her, and with the other, he was gently stroking her hair. In an almost inaudible whisper, he leaned in towards her ear and spoke.

"I love you, too, Hikari Hanazono."

With that, she pulled away from him, hands still gripping his shirt, and stared up at him with her eyes glimmering and full of light. She was smiling a sweet smile, reserved only for him, and her cheeks were even redder than before. Takishima moved some strands of hair from her face and tucked them behind her ear before he cupped her face and leaned towards her. They both closed their eyes and melted as their lips made contact. All of the love they had for each other was pouring out of them like a waterfall and little did they know, but they had an audience. All around them, people were cheering and clapping, though unable to understand Japanese, they knew that something special had just happened.

When they pulled apart, Hikari hugged him tight and Takishima re-embraced her with both his arms around her waist. He was smiling out of overwhelming happiness and relief and his cheeks were tinted pink because of the applauding audience. However, Hikari didn't seem to notice them, because she just smiled, glad to finally have told him how she felt, and she nuzzled her face into his chest, taking in his scent.

"I love you, Kei..."

* * *

"A/N: Woot, two chapters in one month! That's pretty good for me, you have to admit. Anyway, no, this isn't the last chapter, the next one will be. Twelve chapters will make this story complete. Finally! Anywho, I hope I didn't make this chapter too cliché and cheesy, but I just couldn't help myself. I hope you guys have enjoyed this story thus far and I'd be happy if you left some reviews before I end it. Thanks for sticking with me up to this point and I promise that it won't take long for me to write the final chapter."


	12. Out of Luck

Hikari had been sent back home on a flight after spending some quality time with Kei. He finally convinced her to use his first name, no matter how hard it was for her to say. They had gotten to walk around the city for a bit and talk and enjoy each other's company. As much as he would have loved for her to stay and return home with him, he knew she couldn't miss that much school. Her parents and brother would worry sick about her, the school would say she skipped and she'd be in a mess of trouble, and Akira would kill him the moment he stepped off the plane. So as their night was coming to an end, Kei rode with Hikari to the airport and kissed her goodbye and watched her plane take off before heading back to his hotel.

Then when Hikari's plane landed, Akira and the rest of the S.A. were waiting eagerly for her. She was wrapped in a bear hug by her best friend, who proceeded to question her endlessly about her "trip." The others took their turns hugging her and welcoming her home and they let Akira ask all the questions, which she fearfully answered on their drive home. She knew how much Akira loathed Kei, so she knew she would be furious to find out that they were an official couple now. The others would surely support her, but they wouldn't be able to save her or Kei from her wrath.

However, the remainder of his trip was enough time for Hikari to brace the others for what was to become of the rest of their year. In fact, when he returned, the others quickly became distracted by Megumi when they found out about her and Yahiro. Hikari accidentally let it slip out that she had seen the two of them together when she was out on her date with Kei, thus forcing Megumi to confess her secret relationship with him. She knew she would have to apologize to Megumi later, but it gave her and Kei the perfect opportunity to slip away and have the day to themselves.

Ryuu, Jun, and Tadashi all congratulated Kei on _finally_ winning over the dense girl. They had to ask him how it all happened, because during the whole thing, no one else would give up any details. Only Akira seemed to know what was going on and she wasn't going to tell anyone that he was succeeding at stealing her "angel." So he told the story from beginning to end, even mentioning that he knew it was them sending kids Hikari's way the day of their challenge, and by the end, they were all speechless. Not only were they shocked that he knew what they had done, but they were even more impressed at the fact he actually came out and told Hikari how he felt. They never thought he'd actually have the courage to do it.

Meanwhile, Akira was busy fussing over both Hikari and Megumi, whining that she had lost both of her sweethearts to "evil, menacing snakes." Both girls just tried to remain calm, while their best friend had a massive panic attack and was wearing down the floor with her constant pacing. They patiently and fearfully waited for her to calm herself and stop venting before they tried to comfort her with words. They reassured her somewhat by telling her that she'd never lose them and that they'd be alright with the boys. In the end, though, they had to call in Tadashi to suffer at her hands and then completely calm her in a way that only he could.

So now that everything had been established, life seemed to get back to normal. Everyone still gathered in the greenhouse for tea and sweets, Akira still beat the snot out of Tadashi for being so impatient and greedy, Megumi and Jun still clung to Ryuu and threw hissy fits when he went to tend his animals, and Hikari and Kei still had their morning rivalry. Yes, despite being a couple, Kei was still Hikari's number one rival and she was determined as ever, even more so now that they were dating, to take him down and beat him. He still graciously accepted her challenges and beat her every time.

He had been thinking lately, though, that she had actually managed to beat him at something. Something he wanted desperately to win, but could never succeed at. After he first realized he had feelings for her, he wanted so badly for her to be his, but because of her oblivious and dense nature, he knew it was never going to happen. He wanted desperately to win his heart back from the girl who stole it without permission and unknowingly toyed with his emotions day in and day out, but he could never do it. In the end, however, he was glad to have lost to her, because if he hadn't, he wouldn't currently be walking hand-in-hand with her in the very park where he confessed.

There was a part of him that wanted to tell her of her one victory over him, but there was another part of him that told him that was something to be shared at another time down the road. Besides, he still loved seeing her get all angry with him for calling her 'Miss Rank Two.' He couldn't help it; she was so cute when she was angry and even cuter when she was determined to beat him. But he toned things down and tried to make their relationship seem more romantic rather than friendship based. It took some time, but he eventually warmed Hikari up to holding hands, hugging, and even kissing in public. Nothing too intimate, just enough to let everyone know she was taken.

It wasn't just their relationship that blossomed, though. Akira and Tadashi's relationship got more serious as both of them tried to take deeper interest into each other's hobbies. Tadashi spent some time in the kitchen helping Akira make her tea and sweets, while Akira went out with him exploring and although she was more uncooperative than he was, they were both actually working at it. Megumi and Yahiro were spending more time together, especially around other S.A. members to make up for all their secrecy and Yahiro became determined to help Megumi protect her voice. It was sweet in only a way that Yahiro could be sweet and only Megumi could take his actions as a sign of him caring rather than being a jerk. Jun was spending more time with Sakura, actually finding that he liked the crazy pink-haired lady, but he still had some issues with his "other half" to work out. Even Ryuu was starting to see someone, though the rest of the S.A. knew little about his "mystery woman."

So all was going well for everyone, but that didn't mean their wasn't the occasional difficulty that came with being in a relationship. Kei found that while a great deal of the school population was crazy about him and Hikari being a couple, saying how it was so cute and fitting, there were also a handful of students who were filled to the brim with jealousy. Unfortunately, most of that jealousy was targeted at Hikari. Jealous girls would often go up to her and try to intimidate her in groups, while men were constantly trying to flirt with her and pull moves on her, thus angering Kei. He often had to come to her rescue, not because she couldn't handle things herself, but because she was still oblivious as to what was going on. She never understood why the girls were so angry or that guys were flirting with her rather than just talking.

Aside from the jealousy and occasional small fight, all was well for the two teens and the rest of their group. They spent as much time as possible together, whether it be to challenge one another or go on a date, and they always enjoyed each other's company.

"Oi, Kei."

"Hm?"

"Just think: if I hadn't lost that challenge to you, we wouldn't be together today."

"What brought this on all of a sudden?"

"Hm, I don't know. I suppose you just recently beating me made me think that if I wasn't always out of luck, I wouldn't be so lucky today."

* * *

"A/N: It's finally done! It took roughly eight months for me to complete this story. That's sad, I know, but it's done now. Thank you so much to everyone who stuck with this story from beginning to end. You guys rock and I'm so sorry that you had to wait so long for updates and whatnot. To any future readers, be thankful you didn't have to suffer like these guys did and you just got read the whole thing from start to finish. I personally avoid stories that are still in-progress out of fear that they will never be complete, so I don't blame anyone that only reads complete stories. But the whole concept of writing multi-chapter stories is to get reviews and criticism from people that read them before they're actually finished and this site wouldn't thrive without you guys. I hope to write more for this fandom, but don't worry - I've taken a new approach to multi-chapter stories. They will only be published when they are completed. So until next time, I hope you enjoyed this story and reviews will always be appreciated."


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